In e-books case closing arguments, Apple warns of “chilling effect”

"There is no such thing as a conspiracy by telepathy," Apple's attorney says.

Earlier this month, the United States government finally put Apple on trial in a Manhattan courtroom. Its alleged crime? Conspiring with book publishers (all of whom have since settled similar cases with the government) to keep e-book prices artificially high. Federal prosecutors have called Apple the “ringleader” in a scheme to wrest control of the e-book industry away from Amazon.

On Thursday, Apple presented its closing arguments, noting that if the company lost the case it would create a “chilling effect” on how some businesses explore new markets. "We submit a ruling against Apple on this record sets a dangerous precedent," Orin Snyder, Apple’s attorney, said on the final day of the trial. The verdict will come from a federal judge, not a jury.

According to Reuters’ reporting, at one point during the final day of the trial, US District Judge Denise Cote asked Apple to confirm that it "understood publishers were willing to work together to put pressure on Amazon."

Apple’s counsel said that the company was unaware that publishers had been meeting among themselves prior to Apple’s launch of the iBookstore and the iPad. "There is no such thing as a conspiracy by telepathy," Snyder added.

Previously, in a highly unusual move, Judge Cote already indicated her willingness to side with the government.

"I believe that the government will be able to show at trial direct evidence that Apple knowingly participated in and facilitated a conspiracy to raise prices of e-books and that the circumstantial evidence in this case, including the terms of the agreements [between Apple and publishers], will confirm that," Judge Cote said during a pretrial hearing last week, according to Reuters coverage from before the trial began.